Hailie Deegan 'just taking it as it goes' on her NASCAR Xfinity debut

Hailie Deegan is a popular NASCAR driver who is currently competing in the Camping World Truck Series for David Gilliland Racing. The 21-year-old driver will be making her NASCAR Xfinity Series debut at Las Vegas Motor Speedway on Saturday with SS Green Light Racing.

The Temecula, California-native will be piloting the #7 Pristine Auction Ford on Saturday, October 15, 2022, and will become only the third female driver to compete in NASCAR’s second-tier series.

Driving the #7 Ford in Friday’s qualifying race, Deegan secured 20th place starting position for Saturday’s Alsco Uniforms 302 at the 1.5-mile-long tri-oval track.

Heading into Las Vegas, Deegan admitted that she is nervous before her Xfinity debut because things can always go against her. She went on to say that despite full preparation, things can still go wrong so she is taking the race as normal.

Deegan said:

"I did everything I possibly could, but there was still a part of me that was nervous because things can always go wrong. You could run over a little debris and next thing you know you’ve got a flat and you’re in the fence and you have to go to a backup."

She continued:

"There’s a lot of things that still can wrong even though you’re fully prepared. I think just taking it as it goes. We made it through the first day. That’s all that matters."

Hailie Deegan also mentioned that she has been working towards her Xfinity ride all year to see the challenges of the Xfinity Series races. She feels that moving from Truck Series to Xfinity Series brings a certain level of strength and weakness because things are changing, vehicles are changing.

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“Our goal for the first stage is to stay on the lead lap”- Hailie Deegan

Speaking about her goals for Saturday’s Xfinity Series race, Hailie Deegan said that she will look to stay in the lead lap in the first stage of the race. Further to the conversation, Deegan said:

"Our goal for the first stage is to stay on the lead lap, find what I like, what changes we need with the car because I’ve never done a long run to be able to know how they transition over a run. Just really go after it the second stage but also be there, avoid the carnage. Hopefully, there is none and we have a clean race."

Catch Hailie Deegan at Las Vegas Motor Speedway on Saturday, October 15, 2022 at 3:00 pm ET. The coverage will be broadcast on USA Network.